


Interlude

by sonofdvrin



Series: hearth and the heart [2]
Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Meeting the Parents, No Beta
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:02:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27636548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sonofdvrin/pseuds/sonofdvrin
Summary: All Nate wants is to make a good impression on Cale's parents, knowing that it's important to his boyfriend.
Relationships: Nathan MacKinnon/Cale Makar
Series: hearth and the heart [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1804261
Comments: 2
Kudos: 35





	Interlude

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a quick, short story as I continue working on the Tyson/Zach fic! I hope you all enjoy it!

_ "You have a place in my heart no one else ever could have." F. Scott Fitzgerald _

“So, Nate, how do you feel about meeting my parents?” Cale inquires one night. “They’re coming to our game against Calgary in a few weeks, and I’d love to introduce you to them.”

Nate pauses for a moment. “Yeah, I think that would be nice. But...are you sure you don’t want to spend time with them? You don’t get to see them all that often during the season.”

“Yes, of course I’m sure. I wouldn’t have asked otherwise,” Cale teases. “They’re my family and they know how serious we are. Besides, this feels more casual than dragging you to Calgary in the off-season.”

“I...I guess you’re right,” Nate says. “As long as you’re sure it won’t be a problem.”

Cale laughs. “Seriously, they’re super excited to meet you, especially considering that I talk about you every time I call home.”

“Count me in then, I guess,” Nate replies, blushing a little.

As much as Nate tries to act casual about it, he’s intimidated to meet Cale’s parents. He knows how important family is to his boyfriend, especially since he’s a hearth witch. There’s a need to make a good impression on them, especially since he knows how much he broke Cale’s heart  _ before _ they were even dating. 

“I can tell you’re thinking about something serious,” Cale says, poking Nate’s side. “Tell me about it.”

Nate frowns, unsure about admitting his feelings. “It’s just - it’s nothing really, I guess. Just feeling a bit intimidated meeting your parents.”

“I told you that they’re excited to meet you,” Cale replies, rolling his eyes. “I promise that you have nothing to worry about.”

“But we didn’t start out all that great,” Nate whispers. “I mean, I kind of fucked things up a little bit, didn’t I?”

“It was just a small misstep, and everything has been good ever since then because we make sure to talk to each other. And we’re honest about our feelings,” Cale says. 

“Are you really sure it’s going to be okay? I know how much your parents mean to you.”

“Yes, you know I wouldn’t be introducing you to them if they secretly hated you. I want them to see how much you mean to me.”

“Okay,” Nate says quietly. 

Cale sighs, and tugs Nate onto the couch, forcing him to lay down. He plasters himself on top of Nate, knowing that it’ll help calm him down a little. They lay there for a few minutes, just enjoying each other’s presence. Nate tries to not get lost in his thoughts again, but it’s hard to not get swept away.

“I’m losing you again,” Cale whispers. 

“Sorry,” Nate whispers back. “It’s just...I know how important they are to you and if they don’t like me, I’m scared that you’ll leave me. You’ve become so important to me and it’s hard to not be scared, I guess.”

“First of all, they won’t hate you, especially not with how much I tell them about you. Second of all, you won’t lose me, Nate. You’re stuck with me now.”

Nate lets out a small laugh. “I really hope you’re right about this.”

“I know I’m right,” Cale says with a bright smile. 

Nate rolls his eyes in response, before giving Cale a quick kiss. From there, he tries to do a better job at hiding his feelings, but it’s difficult with Cale. As much as he insists that his magic has nothing to do with it, Nate is certain that it at least helps a little bit. At the very least, they aren’t living together yet, so he doesn’t have to keep up the façade forever.

In the rare moments that Nate is alone, he thinks of ways to impress Cale’s parents. He’s sure that he doesn’t really need to do anything, but he wants to do everything he can to make sure that they like him. Every time he thinks of an idea, Nate makes note of it in his phone. Some ideas are more over the top than others, but anything is worth a shot at this point.

“So, I know we’re still a week away from family dinner, but I was wondering if they’d want to go somewhere nice?” Nate inquires after practice one day.

Despite his best attempt at being subtle, Cale gives him a knowing look, able to read right through him. Nate sighs, not sure why he even bothered in the first place.

“Dad’s going to be making dinner for us,” Cale answers. “We’re keeping it casual.”

“Casual, right, of course,” Nate mutters.

Nate knows that having Gary make dinner is probably a regular occurrence for Cale, but it feels like a big deal to him. He knows that Gary is a food witch, and anything he makes is bound to be better than any fancy restaurant they go to in Calgary. It’s still intimidating, though, knowing that whatever is made will feel like a big deal to Nate.

“You’re overthinking again, I can sense it from over here,” Cale says with a knowing smile. “I promise this is going to be a very casual family dinner.”

“But I’m meeting your parents for the first time,” Nate groans.

“They already love you, Nate. How many times do I have to keep telling you that?”

“Probably forever, if I’m being honest.”

Cale sighs. “I’ll tell them to go easy on you if that helps at all.”

“Go easy on me?” Nate asks, squinting. “So that means they  _ do _ want to grill me alive.”

“Oh my god, that’s not what I mean,” Cale sighs. “I was just going to tell them to keep their enthusiasm toned down a little bit.”

“Sure, whatever you say,” Nate says. “Also, if they don’t want a fancy dinner, what  _ do _ they want? Isn’t it like...important to bring a gift if you’re visiting a hearth witch?”

“I mean, if you’re making a bargain or something with one you’ve never met before,” Cale replies, frowning. “But you’re not doing that because  _ you _ are meeting my mom. If you really want to get them something, just bring yourself in a good mood. Just because I can deal with you grumpy doesn’t mean they can.”

Nate gives him a look. “Fine, but I’ll figure something to give them to make up for the lack of gift this time.”

“Dear god,” Cale mutters. “Save the gift giving for birthdays or Christmas, okay?”

“Fine,” Nate sighs. 

* * *

As they walk up the driveway towards Cale’s house, Nate feels anxiety start to creep through his bones. Cale had made sure to shoot down all of his crazy ideas, insisting on the fact that they just wanted to meet Nate. It feels wrong to not be bringing anything with him, but Nate does his best to try and calm himself.

“Nate, I promise nothing is going to happen,” Cale says quietly before grabbing his hand. “We’re going to have a nice dinner before going back to the hotel.”

“Right, yes, of course,” Nate mutters. “Definitely not about to meet your parents and ruin everything nice they’ve ever thought about me.”

Before he knows it, Cale is knocking on the front door. There’s a split second where Nate considers bolting, and running back to the hotel. But this is important to Cale, and he said that he would be there. It’s just a bit too late to back out of this now, and he knows that this wouldn’t be helping his impression with Cale’s parents.

“Cale, sweetie, I’m so glad you could make it,” Laura says happily as she opens the door.

She tugs Cale into a tight hug before turning to Nate. He freezes, not quite sure what to do, but then he’s being swept up into a hug as well. It takes a moment for his brain to catch up, but as soon as it does, he makes sure to hug Laura back as well. When she pulls back, she gives him a large, welcoming smile.

“It’s so good to officially meet you, Nate,” she says. “I hope you brought your appetite with you because Gary may have gone a little overboard with dinner tonight.”

Cale rolls his eyes. “I told him to not stress about it.”

“Well, tonight’s a big night, isn’t it?” Laura retorts.

“See, that’s what  _ I’ve _ been telling you,” Nate jokes, grinning. 

“Oh my god, all three of you are going to be insufferable,” Cale groans. “All of you have been freaking out ever since Nate agreed to dinner.”

“It’s nice to know that you’re on the same page,” Laura says. “Now come in before we let too much more cold air come in. And I’m sure your father is dying to see both of you.”

After they make their way inside, Nate feels a wave of comfort wash over him. He feels a bit taken aback at first, but he realizes that it’s probably Laura’s magic. It feels similar to Cale’s magic, but Nate isn’t sure if all hearth magic feels like Cale’s, or if it’s truly something that runs in the family. At the very least, it helps ease his nerves quite a bit, and he’s able to take in the smells of dinner.

“Cale, why don’t you go see if your father needs help? I’ll show Nate around a little bit before we sit down,” Laura says.

“That’s subtle,” Cale mutters as he wanders off to the kitchen.

Once he’s out of sight, Laura turns to Nate. “I really am glad that you came. Cale has talked about you a lot.”

Nate smiles a little. “That’s what he told me. But I know it’s not all good.”

“The beginning was hard, but things were hard at first. I know you were going through a hard time losing Tyson,” Laura replies. “Cale and I know more than anyone how difficult it is to lose someone that close to you.”

“I still could have done more,” he whispers.

“And there will always be more that we could have done. You’re doing wonderful now, though, and that’s what matters,” Laura says. “Now, I have some baby pictures of Cale up in the living room. Would you care to see?”

“Oh, I’d never turn down the chance to see baby pictures,” Nate replies, smiling softly.

Dinner goes much better than Nate would have expected. Sure, there’s more than a few awkward silences, but by the end of the night, Nate feels like he belongs. Laura and Gary try sending them back with leftovers, but are talked out of it when Cale brings up the fact that they have to fly back home. Before leaving, there’s also a promise of them coming to visit Nate and Cale in Denver as soon as possible.

Once they get back to the hotel room, and are curled up in bed together, Nate feels himself fully relaxed. As nice dinner turned out to be, he still felt tense, constantly trying to make sure that he was making a good impression at all times. 

“So, did that turn out better than expected?” Cale whispers into Nate’s neck.

“Yeah, I guess so,” Nate whispers back.

He can feel Cale smile before replying. “I told you that it wouldn’t be a big deal. They really liked you, you know. I mean, dad wanted to send leftovers back with us.”

“That might have been more out of fatherly love more than approval,” Nate laughs.

Cale pulls himself up a little so he can look Nate in his eyes, obviously concerned. 

“I promise it’s because he liked you. He hardly does that with me anymore because he knows that we love each other,” Cale says.

“So it’s...like his love language?” Nate asks, a little confused.

Cale smiles a little. “Yeah, I guess you could say that. But you’re a part of the family now, so whatever test you were looking to pass, you did it.”

“Oh, that’s...yeah, that’s good,” Nate replies, a little breathless. “So, I guess the next step is you meeting my parents? I mean, it only seems fair.”

“I...yes, I guess so,” Cale says, flustered. 


End file.
